News Center

Kool-e-Hashmat Khan, once a natural wetland inhabiting 157 species of migratory birds, and a recreational site for residents of Kabul city, has lost most of its birds over the last few decades of unrest due to poor attention from previous governments and illegal encroachments by neighboring communities.

Shaesta Waiz, a professional Afghan-American pilot, has been flying solo around the world to promote Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) among girls. She kicked off her journey from Daytona Beach in Florida on May 13 and has been scheduled to fly to 34 destinations in five continents.

Kabul (AFP) - The first women settled on this stony slope outside Kabul in the 1990s hoping to escape the stigma those like them are forced to endure. Today it is known as Afghanistan's 'hill of widows', home to a cluster of women who have eked out independence in a society that shuns and condemns them as immoral.

Last week, UNDP Country Director, Douglas Keh gave an in-depth interview to the Ariana news network about UNDP’s work in reducing poverty and bringing better lives to people in Afghanistan. In a wide-ranging interview lasting forty minutes, Mr. Keh spoke about the major development issues in the country, including women’s rights, democratic governance, climate change, and security. He also spoke about the importance of the Sustainable Development Goals.

With support from UNDP, the ministry of interior held a two-day national conference to reform police law. Over 300 participants including senior government officials, lawmakers, police officials from all 34 provinces, legal practitioners, members of civil society and human rights activists attended the event. The conference took place after a series of consultations over the past year with police officers throughout the country.

Malaria has always been a problem in Afghanistan, especially in the eastern and southeastern provinces. But today, due to successful malaria control programmes, incidents of the disease are at their lowest for 15 years.

In the fall of 2013, China introduced the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) to connect countries in Asia, the Middle East, Africa and Europe to promote more effective economic cooperation, which could benefit nearly four billion people in emerging economies in these regions.

Over 400 young men and women from around the country gathered at a symposium in Kabul last week and proposed some creative ideas on how Afghanistan can achieve Sustainable Development Goals by 2030. Youth Thinkers Society organized the event in collaboration with UNDP Afghanistan and the Ministry of Economy.

Afghanistan National Police Academy gained the status of a university. The Ministry of Interior has been running the academy for over 50 years, but its graduates couldn’t get their degrees attested. Now, the Afghan Higher Education Ministry, an official body to accredit educational degrees, has agreed to recognize all the academy’s four- year courses as bachelor degrees, after the academy fulfilled the higher education requirements for degree programmes.

Choices! All of UNDP Afghanistan in 2 minutes (VIDEO)

UNDP in Focus

Time for Global Action

UNDP in Focus 2014-2015 highlights our key actions over the past year and their impact on the lives of beneficiaries around the world. The report also outlines the ongoing restructuring process that will ensure UNDP is fit for purpose in the new post-2015 landscape.